Joseph C. Schnaubelt, O.S.A.

1931 – 2013 (July 22)

 Joseph Cletus Schnaubelt was born on May 30, 1931, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, the son of Joseph A. Schnaubelt and Margaret McIntire. He was baptized on June 14, 1931 at Mount Carmel Church, Altoona, and attended Saint Mary Parish School there, and Altoona Catholic High School. In 1948 he transferred to Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, as a postulant for his fourth year of high school. He was received into the Order as a novice on September 9, 1949, and after a year at Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburg, N.Y., he professed first vows on September 10, 1950. He then attended Villanova University, professed solemn vows on September 10, 1953, and received a BA in Philosophy in 1954. He then went to Augustinian College, Washington, DC, for  theological studies, and was ordained to the priesthood on June 8, 1957, at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, by Bishop John McNamara. He received an MA in Classics from the Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, in 1960.

Father Schnaubelt was assigned to Saint Joseph Friary and Msgr. Bonner High School, Drexel Hill, PA, where he taught, from 1958 to 1960. He was then assigned as associate pastor at Saint Rita of Cascia Parish, Philadelphia. From 1963 to 1965 and from 1967 to 1970, he was assigned to Saint John of Sahagun Friary and to Archbishop Carroll High School, Washington, DC, where he taught and was also guidance director. From 1965 to 1967, he taught at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island. 

In 1970, Father Schnaubelt was assigned to Augustinian College, to pursue graduate studies at the Catholic University of America. In 1973, he was assigned to Saint Thomas Monastery and was appointed to teach and to work in the Augustinian Historical Institute at Villanova University. In 1995, because of failing health he retired from both teaching and working at the Institute.

Father Schnaubelt pursued a life of simplicity and kindness, fulfilling whatever duties were assigned to him. He endured his physical ailments without complaint, as he suffered the effects of Parkinsons Disease in latter years. 

He was admitted to Bryn Mawr Hospital where he died on Monday, July 22, 2013. Father’s funeral Mass was celebrated on July 25, 2013, in Saint Thomas of Villanova Church on the University campus. He is buried at the Augustinian Plot at Calvary Cemetery, Conshohocken, PA.

Jerome C. Schmalz, O.S.A.

1871 – 1894 (May 31)

Charles Schmalz was born in Rauenthal, Germany on February 26, 1871, to Richard Schmalz and Katharine Speck. He immigrated to the United States where he was vested as a novice at Villanova, Pennsylvania, on December 8, 1892. Several months later, in March, 1893, he underwent the amputation of his foot at St. Agnes Hospital in Philadelphia. He returned to the Villanova Monastery on May 27, 1893, on crutches, but professed that he was ‘glad to be home again.’

On May 28, 1894, he received Viaticum while fully conscious and passed away quietly and easily three days later, on May 31, 1894 at the age of 23.

For the short time that he was with us, Brother Jerome served as a tailor of the community. He was buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova on June 2, 1894.
 

George J. Scannell, O.S.A.

1882 – 1930 (January 9)

George Joseph Scannell was born in Philadelphia, PA on September 19, 1882, one of four sons and four daughters of David Scannell and Mary Tole. He entered the novitiate at Villanova on July 4, 1907, and professed vows on July 6, 1908. On September 30th, he left for Italy with 11 other friars to continue studies. He made his solemn profession at Santa Monica, Rome, with 8 others, in the hands of the Prior General, Thomas Rodriguez. He was ordained to the priesthood in Rome on July 25, 1913, in the chapel of the Vincentians at Monte Citino, by Archbishop Giuseppe Ceppetelli. Two days later he celebrated his first Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Genazzano.

Father Scannell returned to the United States in January, 1914 due to the death of his father, and continued his studies at Villanova until June of the year. He then served at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Parish, the Bronx, New York, and at Saint Rita Parish, Philadelphia.

He died in Saint Agnes' Hospital, Philadelphia on January 9, 1930 at the age of 47, and is buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova. 

Paul A. Scanlan, O.S.A.

1884 – 1956 (May 11)

Andrew Scanlan, son of Andrew Scanlan and Mary Reilly, was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts on November 28, 1884. After completing his early education, he became a candidate for the Province at Villanova, Pennsylvania, in 1901, taking the name Brother Paul. He entered the novitiate in 1907, and professed simple vows on July 7, 1908. He was solemnly professed on November 29, 1914.

Brother Paul served the Province at Saint Rita's in Philadelphia, PA, where he was the agent for the "Good Counsel" magazine. He also served at the Villanova Monastery, Saint Rita's in Chicago, Il., Saint Mary's in Lawrence, MA and at Saint Augustine's in Ojai, CA, in various roles as sacristan, janitor and printer. Brother Paul retired to the Villanova Monastery because of poor health. He died in Bryn Mawr Hospital on May 11, 1956 at the age of 72, shortly after having suffered a heart attack at the monastery. Father Patrick Dundon, prior of the monastery was celebrant of the Requiem Mass. Father Robert Regan, O.S.A. preached. Brother Paul is buried in the Community Cemetery at Villanova. 

Henry F. Scanlan, O.S.A.

1908 – 1972 (July 9)

Henry F. Scanlan was born in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, on February 1908, the youngest of nine children of Thomas Scanlan and Mary Watson. He grew up in Germantown, Philadelphia, and graduated from LaSalle College in 1931. After college Henry entered the Trappist Monastery at Gethsemane, Kentucky, as a postulant but discovered that his vocation was not to the Trappist way of life. He applied to the Augustinians, was accepted as a novice at Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburg, New York, and professed simple vows on September 10, 1934. He studied philosophy at Villanova College and theology at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C. and was ordained to the priesthood on June 15, 1937, by Archbishop Michael Curley at the National Shrine, Washington, D.C.

After ordination Father was assigned to Villanova Preparatory, Ojai, CA, where he taught until becoming a military chaplain in 1944. He served in Greenland and on Mexico’s Baja California’s peninsula. He left the service in 1946 and he taught at Villanueva University, Havana, Cuba for six years.

From 1956 to 1968 Father Scanlan taught at Monsignor Bonner High School, Drexel Hill, PA. In 1968 he was appointed prior of the community at Malvern Preparatory School.

Father Scanlan died on Sunday, July, 9, 1972 after a long illness. He was buried at Saint Mary's Hall Cemetery, Villanova, until the graves of the friars were re-located to Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, PA.
 

Daniele A. Scalabrella, O.S.A.

1877 – 1918 (October 15)

Daniele Antonio Scalabrella, the son of Sante Scalabrella, was born at Onani in the diocese of Aquapendente, Italy, on September 27, 1876. He entered the Order on July 15, 1894 as a member of the Roman Province and was ordained on December 21, 1901. 

The following year he was sent to the United States and was assigned to Our Mother of Good Counsel Parish in South Philadelphia on August 5th. At the laying of the cornerstone of the new church of Saint Rita on October 27, 1907, he was invited to give the address in Italian. He became pastor of Good Counsel in 1912 after a very active period of 10 years in the parish, but resigned in 1914 when he was affiliated to the Villanova Province on October 11th. That same year he was sent to Mechanicville, New York, where he ministered to a colony of some 500 Italian residents there in the parish of Saint Paul. Persuaded that in order to form a vibrant Catholic community among the Italian people, it would be necessary for them to have a church of their own, he purchased the Houlihan Estate for this purpose with the approval of the bishop. Before he could carry out his building plans, however, he became a victim of the deadly Spanish flu pandemic which afflicted some 300 people in Mechanicville. 

On Saturday, October 13, 1918, Father Scalabrella returned from retreat at Villanova. He fell ill the following afternoon, entered St. Mary's Hospital in Troy that evening, and died the following morning, Monday, October 15, 1918. He was 41 years old, and was one of three local Catholic priests and three members of the Province, who died in the epidemic. Father Serafino Aurigemma, who both preceded and followed Father Scalabrella in ministering to the Italians in Mechanicville, preached the funeral eulogy in English, and described his confrere as "a zealous and saintly priest, (whom) we all deeply mourned." At the funeral Mass, which took place in St. Paul's Church, Father Ottaviano of Gloversville
was invited to preach the eulogy in Italian. Father Scalabrella was buried in St. Augustine Cemetery, Troy, on October 18, 1918. 
 

Jude Sanelli, O.S.A.

1927 – 2001 (February 18)

Eugenio John Sanelli, son of Eugenio Sanelli and Rosalia Schiavo, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania., on May 31, 1927, and was baptized on December 3, 1927, in the church of Saint Nicholas of Tolentine, Philadelphia. He applied to the Philadelphia Vice-Province as a lay-brother, choosing the name Jude, and fulfilled the oblature and postulancy at Saint Augustine Monastery, Nova Scotia. He then entered Our Mother of Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburgh, New York, on September 6, 1952, and made first profession of vows on September 7, 1953. Three years later he professed solemn vows in Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Church, Philadelphia. 

In 1972, Brother founded Our Lady of Good Counsel Center in Philadelphia, an assisted-living facility for women. Two years prior to the opening of the Center one columnist wrote, “He is the great hope of the poor in South Philadelphia. He tends the needs of the children and old people who do not have much time left but there are not enough hours on the clock for Brother Jude to do what he thinks he should.” In a feature story for a local newspaper, a staff writer noted: “Brother Jude’s clear blue eyes cloud up when he talks about the people he sees every day.” 

Brother Jude’s desire to help the poor and elderly followed upon his ministry of operating a day nursery and pre-kindergarten school at Saint Nicholas Church, supervising the care of about 200 children nine hours a day, five days a week. At various times he served the Vice-Province also as cook and in secretarial work.

Brother Jude was a private and prayerful man who gained strength from his devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He declined to take credit for the success of the center, claiming, “I had quite a partner. The best. When God does something, he does it well.” Brother Jude’s warmth and benevolence made him a symbol of hospitality and many of the old Italian-speaking parishioners sought him out as a spiritual director. 

Brother Jude became affiliated to the Province of Saint Thomas of Villanova in 1995 at the time of the suppression of the Vice-Province. He died on February 18, 2001. A Mass of the Resurrection was celebrated at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine Church in Philadelphia, Pa. with interment in Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Springfield, Pa. 

Augustus C. Sandmann, O.S.A.

1921 – 2013 (November 17)

Augustus Christopher Sandmann was born on August 20, 1921, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the son of Augustus Sandmann and Marie Shannon. He had one brother, John, who preceded him in death. He was baptized at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church, Atlantic City, on September 9, 1927, and attended St. Nicholas of Tolentine Parish School He entered Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, as a postulant in 1935, and was received into the Order as a novice on September 9, 1939, at Good Counsel Novitiate, New Hamburg, New York. He professed simple vows on September 10, 1940, and then attended Villanova College until 1944, when he received his BA in Philosophy. He professed solemn vows on September 10, 1943, and, at Augustinian College, Washington, DC, completed theological studies in 1948. Augustus also pursued graduate studies at the Catholic University of America. He was ordained to the priesthood on September 8, 1947, at the Parish of St. Nicholas of Tolentine, Atlantic City.

Father Sandmann spent his ministry in various parishes of the Province. He began at St. Thomas of Villanova, Rosemont, Pennsylvania in 1948, and then was transferred in 1954 to St. Nicholas of Tolentine, Atlantic City. In 1957, he was assigned to Our Mother of Consolation Parish, Chestnut Hill, and in 1963, to St. Denis, Havertown. He returned in 1965 to St. Thomas of Villanova, and in 1968 to Atlantic City. In 1969 he was once again at Rosemont, and in 1971 was assigned to St. Nicholas of Tolentine, Bronx, N.Y. From 1978 until 2006 he was an associate at Our Lady of Good Counsel, Staten Island, New York. The longevity and continuity of his service in each of these parishes provided him with the opportunity to serve many generations of the same families.

Father Sandmann retired to St. Thomas of Villanova Monastery on November 1, 2006 and died early Sunday morning, November 17, 2013, in the Prospect Park Health & Rehabilitation Residence in Prospect Park, Pennsylvania. His funeral Mass was celebrated by Prior Provincial, Father Mickey Genovese, O.S.A., on Friday November 22, 2013 at St. Thomas of Villanova Church, Villanova. The homily was given by Fr. Robert Murray, O.S.A. Fr. Sandmann is buried at the family plot at Atlantic City Cemetery, Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Michael A. Ryan, O.S.A.

1871 – 1924 (January 25)

Michael Aloysius Ryan, son of James Ryan and Mary Kinsella, was born in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania, on April 29, 1871. He entered Villanova College in 1888 and was received into the novitiate at Villanova on September 3, 1891. He made his profession of simple vows on September 4, 1892, and his solemn profession on September 19, 1895. Following his philosophical and theological studies he was ordained to the priesthood in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, Philadelphia, by Archbishop Ryan on May 30, 1896, and he offered his first Mass the next day.
Father Ryan devoted twenty-two years of fruitful apostolate to the Augustinian Mission Band, whose rector he eventually became. A striking figure with his powerful physique, snow-white hair from his novitiate days, and his clear, incisive, and pleasing voice, Father Ryan was known for the cheeriness of his smile and his cordial manner with priests and people alike. Tireless in preaching mission in the dioceses of Buffalo, Hartford, Boston, Rochester, Philadelphia, New York, Brooklyn, and Chicago, he would on occasion give a two-week mission in the Black Church of Saint Benedict the Moor in Manhattan, and immediately follow up by ministering to the first Catholic Mission at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining.At the close of his labors in the mission field, Father Ryan was appointed rector of Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, Staten Island in 1918. In 1921, he was transferred to Saint Joseph Parish, Greenwich, NY. There, he installed a magnificent bell in the church tower. Suddenly thereafter, he caught pneumonia and four days later passed away, not yet 53 years of age, on January 25, 1924. Just two weeks earlier he had attend the funeral at Villanova of his friend and classmate, Father Frederick Commins, O.S.A. who had been taken at the same age by the same sickness.

Father Daniel Herron, O.S.A. celebrated the Requiem Mas for Father Ryan at Villanova. Among the clergy present was Bishop McCloskey. Father Matthew Corcoran, O.S.A. preached the homily and Father Nicholas Vasey, O.S.A., Prior Provincial, officiated at the grave. Father Ryan is buried in the monastery cemetery at Villanova University.

John R. Ryan, O.S.A.

1931 – 1987 (June 8)

John Russell Ryan was born in Philadelphia, PA, to John Ryan and Mary Brenner on October 21, 1931. He had two sisters. John received his grammar school education at Waldron Academy, Merion, PA, and then entered Malvern Preparatory School, Malvern, PA, from which he graduated in 1950. Impressed by his Augustinian teachers at Malvern, he applied for and was accepted as a post graduate postulant at Augustinian Academy on Staten Island, New York. On September 8, 1951 he was received as a novice at Our Mother of Good Counsel Novitiate in New Hamburg, N.Y., where on September 12, 1952, he professed simple vows. Three years later at the collegiate seminary at Saint Mary's Hall on the campus of Villanova University, professed solemn vows. He studied theology at Augustinian College, Washington, DC, while taking postgraduate courses in English at Villanova during the summer months. On June 7, 1958, he was ordained to the priesthood at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, by Bishop John McNamara.

Father Ryan was assigned to Monsignor Bonner High School, Drexel Hill, PA, where he taught English. The following year, 1960, he began his career as a parochial assistant at Saint Laurence O'Toole Parish in Lawrence, Massachusetts. After some months Father was assigned to Our Mother of Consolation Parish in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA. As assistant pastor he became involved in hospital work which was to become the main interest of his priestly life. In 1963 Father Ryan was transferred to Saint Joseph's Parish in Greenwich, NY, and for the next ten years he assisted at our parishes in New York State, Saint Nicholas of Tolentine in Jamaica, Saint Mary's in Waterford, and the Immaculate Conception in Hoosick Falls. In 1973 Father returned to Our Mother of Consolation, Chestnut Hill, PA, and until 1984 assisted at Our Mother of Good Counsel, Bryn Mawr, and Saint Genevieve, Flourtown, both in Pennsylvania. In 1984 he was transferred to Saint Thomas of Villanova Monastery, Villanova, PA, and began working with campus ministry at the University. He was appointed by the archdiocese chaplain to Haverford State Hospital where he worked effectively with the mentally handicapped.

In his spare time he was also active in caring for the poor and homeless in downtown Philadelphia. Father Jake, as he was affectionately called, was extremely successful in all of these endeavors due to his simple and personal approach. His sudden and unexpected death came while he was reading in his room on the night of June 8, 1987.

At the Mass of Christian Burial celebrated at the church of Saint Thomas of Villanova on the university campus, Father Joseph A. Duffey, O.S.A., prior provincial, characterized John as a kingdom person "a serious Christian, a faithful Augustinian, and a zealous priest." Father is buried in the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, PA.

John J. Ryan, O.S.A.

1858 – 1895 (August 25)

John Joseph Ryan, son of James Ryan and Mary Kinsella, was born at Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania on March 7, 1858, and was baptized there in the Church of Our Mother of Consolation. He was the older brother of Michael Ryan, who also became a member of the American Province. John entered the novitiate at Villanova on September 22, 1876, and professed simple vows on September 23, 1877. He was solemnly professed on October 21, 1880, and was ordained to the priesthood in Germantown, Pa., by Bishop Jeremiah Shanahan of Harrisburg on June 11, 1881.
 After ordination, Father Ryan was assigned to Immaculate Conception Parish in Hoosick Falls, New York. The following year he was transferred to Saint Mary’s Parish, Lawrence, Massachusetts, and in 1883 to Atlantic City, New Jersey. He became Master of Novices in 1885 at Villanova, where he died on August 25, 1895 at the age of 37 of heart failure.
 
His funeral Mass was offered on Thursday, August 29th, after which he was buried there in the Community Cemetery.
 

Jeremiah J. Ryan, O.S.A.

1848 – 1898 (November 19)

Jeremiah Joseph Ryan was born in Fedamore, Ireland, in 1848, the son of William Ryan and Catherine McNamara. After his family immigrated to the United States, he studied at Villanova and entered the novitiate there on January 21, 1871, and was professed on January 22, 1872. He made solemn profession on January 24, 1875, and was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Stephen Ryan, C.M. of Buffalo, New York, on July 19, 1875.

Father Ryan was assigned in 1875 to Saint Mary's Parish, Lawrence, Massachusetts, and in 1890 was named rector of Saint Augustine’s Church, Andover, Mass. In 1894, he was appointed rector of Saint Patrick's in Cambridge, New York.

He was 50 when he died at Saint Patrick's on November 19, 1898, after an illness of several months. A Requiem Mass was offered at Saint Patrick’s on November 22nd, after which his body was taken to Saint Mary's Cemetery in Lawrence.
 

Frederick I. Ryan, O.S.A.

1906 – 1996 (August 24)

Frederick Ignatius Ryan, son of Edward Ryan and Emma Schwartz, was born in Schaghticoke, New York, on August 13, 1906, and baptized in St. John’s Church on August 26, 1906. He attended St. Augustine Academy and Troy High School in Troy, New York. In 1922, he was admitted as a postulant at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, and a year later was accepted into the novitiate. On June 22, 1924, he professed first vows and made solemn profession on August 13, 1927. That same year he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy at Villanova College. He pursued theological studies at St. Monica College, Rome, Italy, where he was ordained to the priesthood on July 6, 1930.

In 1931, Father Ryan was assigned to Saint Rita Parish, Philadelphia. Beginning in December 1936, he spent two years as an assistant in Saint Rita Parish in Chicago Illinois, before returning east to serve at Saint Thomas of Villanova Parish in Rosemont, Pa. On September 6, 1939, Father Ryan was assigned to teach History and English at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, where he helped guide postulants toward the novitiate. On August 7, 1941, he continued his high school teaching career at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine School, Bronx, New York. On September 8, 1945, Father Ryan became a member of the Augustinian Mission Band, in which ministry he spent the next fifteen years.

Father Ryan was prior, pastor and treasurer of various Augustinian communities. In 1936, when asked to be Master of Professed Students, he declined feeling inadequate for that responsibility. In 1957, due to failing health and reasons of conscience, he chose not to accept the offer to be vicar-prior at San Agustin, Marianao, Cuba. In 1959, Father Ryan was appointed prior and pastor of Saint Mary’s Parish, Waterford, N.Y., where he was instrumental in designing and erecting a new friary. He continued his priestly ministry in New York, when in 1965, he was appointed pastor and prior of the Saint Patrick Parish, Cambridge, and in 1968, became an assistant at St. Augustine Church in Troy.

In 1969, when Father Ryan's health began to decline, he was moved to Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital in Philadelphia. The pastor of Saint Augustine Parish in Troy, bore witness to Father Ryan's life of generosity, stating that, "He has been very good here and has been a mighty right arm for me so that I wouldn't make too many mistakes. He has never shirked doing anything that he had been asked. He will be more than welcome back here."

In 1985, Father Ryan's progressive illness made it necessary for him to take up residence at the Teresian House Nursing Home in Albany, New York, where he received proper medical and spiritual care until March 5, 1991, when he retired to Saint Thomas Monastery, Villanova, Pa. Father Ryan died on August 24, 1996, at the age of 90. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated in Saint Mary Church, Waterford, New York. Interment took place in the Ryan family plot at Saint Mary Cemetery.

David H. Ryan, O.S.A.

1910 – 1991 (April 5)

David H. Ryan was born May 15, 1910. He was a graduate of St. Augustine High School in 1926 and the first Augustinian alumnus of the school to be ordained to the priesthood. He was ordained in 1936 together with Father Robert McGrath, O.S.A.

Father Ryan served in many of the California Augustinian communities in education, formation, low income housing, and parochial ministries. He was a person who enjoyed tinkering with things mechanical. While teaching at St. Augustine High School in the early post WWII years one of his subjects was airplane mechanics. He had procured a Navy trainer airplane and the class he taught would disassemble the airplane and then put it back together. Class success was realized when Father Ryan would climb into the cockpit of the airplane at year's end and press the ignition button. People say the noise was deafening as the airplane would be taxied around what was known as the "upper field" of the Saints campus. He was a licensed pilot of light aircraft, a HAM radio operator, and while assigned to the St. Thomas Aquinas Church community in Ojai in his senior years, was writing a computer program on an early desktop computer translating English into Spanish.

While assigned to Ojai in those latter years he was loved by the Hispanic community for his liturgical celebrations in Spanish, especially during the major Church seasons such as Christmas and Easter. He would navigate the streets of Ojai on a Moped scooter, eating lunch with other senior citizens at the Ojai Senior Center. While practicing with the choir in the then downtown chapel in Ojai in preparation for Holy Week, Father Ryan suffered a severe stroke resulting in his death two years later.

Robert P. Russell, O.S.A.

1910 – 1985 (June 30)

A native of Hoosick Falls, New York, Robert Philip Russell was born on April 23, 1910 to Robert Russell and Bridget Darby. As a youth, he attended Saint Mary’s Academy, Hoosick Falls, and completed his high school education at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York. He was received into the novitiate on September 8, 1927, made his profession of simple vows on September 9, 1928 and professed solemn vows on September 9, 1931. He received his B.A. degree in philosophy from Villanova College in 1932, and pursued theological studies at Augustinian College, Washington, DC. He was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop James H. Ryan at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, DC, on June 11, 1935. Father Russell went on to attain an S.T.L. and a Ph.D. degree from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, Italy, in 1938. He later pursued post-doctoral studies at Laval University, the University of Quebec, and the University of Pennsylvania.
 
In 1938, Father Russell was appointed to the faculty of the Philosophy Department at Villanova College. He served as department chairman from 1957 to 1967. In 1957, he established the first graduate program in philosophy at Villanova leading to the M.A. degree. Until a year before his death he taught graduate courses in philosophy, patristics and theology in the Department of Philosophy and Theology of Villanova University.
 
Ever interested in fostering the cause of Saint Augustine, Father Russell became one of the founders and a member of the Editorial Board of the Fathers of the Church series in 1942. In 1959, he became the founder of the annual “Saint Augustine Lecture” sponsored by Villanova University. In 1967 Father Russell was appointed Director of the Augustinian Institute at Villanova University.    
 
In 1969, Father Russell became the founder and general editor of a new annual journal, Augustinian Studies, devoted exclusively to Augustinian studies, the first of its kind in the English language. In 1970, the Patristic Institute, “Augustinianum,” in Rome, Italy, appointed Father Russell to its faculty, where he taught one semester each year until 1983.
 
From 1944 to 1950, he served as Provincial Secretary. From 1959 to 1965 he served as prior of Saint Mary’s Hall, Villanova.
      
Father Russell died of heart failure in Fitzgerald-Mercy Hospital on June 30, 1985. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated in Saint Thomas of Villanova Campus Church on July 2, 1985. The following day  Father Russell was buried in the Augustinian plot at Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.
 

Thomas A. Rowan, O.S.A.

1893 – 1956 (November 8)

Thomas Anthony Rowan was born in Brookville, Pennsylvania on December 17, 1893 to Michael Rowan and Julia O’Loughlin. He entered the novitiate at Villanova, Pa., on June 19, 1913, and made his simple profession on June 19, 1914. He was solemnly professed on June 23, 1917, and was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Dougherty in the Philadelphia Cathedral on May 29, 1920.

In 1921, Father Rowan was assigned as a professor at Villanova Preparatory School at Villanova, Pa. In 1924, he was transferred to Cascia Hall, Tulsa, Oklahoma. He began parochial ministry in 1929 with an assignment to Saint Paul Parish, Mechanicville and then in 1932, to Saint Mary Parish, Wateford, both in New York. In 1941, Father Rowan became pastor and prior at Saint Patrick Church, San Diego, CA. He resigned from these offices in December, 1942, and in January, 1943, was sent to Saint Thomas Parish, Ojai. He became pastor there the following year. 

From 1950 to 1956, he was prior and pastor of Our Mother of Good Counsel in Bryn Mawr, Pa. At the Chapter of 1956, he was named prior of Saint Patrick's in Cambridge, N.Y.

On a visit to the Bryn Mawr parish, Father Rowan died in the early morning of November 8, 1956, at 63 years of age, when fire engulfed his room as the apparent the result of a smoldering cigarette. The Funeral Mass was celebrated at Villanova on November 12, after which Father Rowan was buried at Villanova in the Community Cemetery. He was a cousin to Fathers Joseph and Albert Shannon of our Province.
 

Francis J. Rowan, O.S.A.

1852 – 1887 (September 20)

Francis Joseph Rowan, the son of James Rowan and Marjorie Huston, was born in Stranorlar, Ireland on November 12, 1852. He entered the novitiate at Villanova, Pennsylvania, on January 12, 1873, made profession of simple vows on January 25, 1874 and solemn vows on January 26, 1877. He was ordained to the priesthood at Villanova by Bishop Jeremiah Shanahan of Harrisburg on July 14, 1877.

Father Rowan served for a time as Master of Professed Clerics at Villanova, and later as procurator. Ie assisted in the mssions of at Saint Mary's in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and in February, 1887 was assisgned to Saint Augustine Parish, Lansingburg, and two months later, to Saint Mary’s Parish, Waterford, in New York. He died in Brooklyn, New York, at the home of his sister, on September 20, 1887 at the age of 35. .

The Office of the Dead was held at Villanova on Friday, September 23rd with Father Charles McEvoy, Prior Provincial, presiding. A Requiem Mass was celebrated immediately after by Father Daniel Leonard, O.S.A. of Atlantic City. Father Francis McGowan, O.S.A. preached the homily, in which he spoke of Father Rowan’s faithfulness, gentleness and piety.

Father Rowan is buried at Villanova in the Community Cemetery.
 

John E. Rotelle, O.S.A.

1939 – 2002 (September 1)

John Edward Rotelle, son of Mariano Rotelle and Esther Veneziale, was born on January 18, 1939, in Ambler, Pa. He was baptized in Saint Joseph Church in Amber, and received his early education at Saint Joseph Parochial School. In 1956, he graduated from Malvern Preparatory School, Malvern, Pennsylvania, and entered the novitiate at New Hamburg, New York. John professed first vows on September 10, 1957, and solemn vows on September 10, 1960. In 1961, he graduated from Villanova University with the BA in philosophy, and continued his studies at the Augustinian International College of St. Monica in Rome where he was ordained to the priesthood on February 20, 1965. The following year he obtained the STL from the Gregorian University. He continued his studies in liturgy at Instituto San Anselmo in Rome.

While a student in Rome, during the Second Vatican Council and later, Father Rotelle participated in the Church's liturgical reform, which included the translation of texts for the Sacramentary and the Liturgy of the Hours, and worked on the International Committee on English in the Liturgy (ICEL). For the rest of his life he continued working in those areas, translating and publishing texts from the Church Fathers, especially Saint Augustine, and writers who are a part of Augustinian heritage. In 1969, Father Rotelle became director of students at the International College of Saint Monica. From 1970 to 1974, he was Director of Students at Augustinian College, Washington, DC. In 1977 he took up residence at Austin Friars Hall, in Washington, where he served as second counselor and Sacristan. In 1982, he was appointed Province Director of Communications and a member of the Augustinian Community in Overbrook, Pa. The following year he moved to Saint Thomas Monastery, Villanova, where he lived until 1985, when he became a member of Saint John Stone Friary, Villanova. He became Director of Augustinian Press, Spiritual Director of the Augustinian Seculars, and from 1994 until his death in 2002, secretary to the provincial.

Father Rotelle was a member of an international network of translators and publishers of Liturgical and Patristic works and worked to introduced the early Church writers to a worldwide English-speaking audience. Though his energies were focused on Church related publications, he always had a strong desire to serve in the Peruvian Missions and in higher education. He was proficient in Italian, French, German, Spanish and possessed a reading ability of Dutch. 

Father Rotelle died on September 1, 2002, of cancer. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at Villanova on September 4, 2002, followed by interment in his family’s plot at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania.
 

John Rosseter, O.S.A.

1751 – 1812 (October 20)

John Rosseter was born in Wexford, Ireland on February 23, 1751, the son of Patrick Rosseter and Margaret Bent. He studied for the priesthood in the Irish Seminary of Louvain, and was ordained for the diocese of Ferns. Within a short time he was named pastor in Enniscorthy, a post he held for four years. In 1783 he resigned his pastorate, entered the Augustinian novitiate in Dublin and made his profession on May 31, 1784. He was then assigned to the community at New Ross, where he spent the next ten years, with a two year hiatus as formation director at the Irish College in Rome during that period. 

In 1794, Father Rosseter came to the United States where, with Father Michael Ennis, a diocesan priest of Wexford, he entered the missionary services under the jurisdiction of Bishop Carroll. For some years, he lived at Coffee Run in Delaware and directed the building of the Church. From there he also attended the country missions, as well as one in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

In 1796, he worked with Father Carr at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia. In this same year, he, Father Carr and others initiated moves for the foundation of a new province. In 1796, while stationed at Saint Mary's in Philadelphia, he and Father Carr purchased the first ground for Saint Augustine's Church in Philadelphia. And when Saint Augustine's was opened in September 1801, Father Rosseter was made the rector of Saint Mary's and superior of old Saint Joseph's, offices he held until 1808 when Father Michael Egan was named the first Bishop of Philadelphia.

Father Rosseter's health began to fail in 1804. However, he was very active in administering the Sacraments during the Yellow Fever Plague in 1805. In 1811, his ill health forced him to retire to the Saint Thomas Manor in Saint Charles' County, Maryland. He died there at the age of 61 on October 20, 1812, and is buried in the cemetery there.

Father Rosseter can be considered the Augustinian pioneer in the American Augustinian mission, having arrived two years before Father Matthew Carr, with the intention of starting an Augustinian foundation. It would be Father Carr, however, who would significantly help it to become a reality.
 

Louis A. Rongione, O.S.A.

1912 – 1980 (June 19)

Louis Anthony Rongione, son of Joseph Rongione and Christina Celino, was born on August 23, 1912, in Aquafondata, Italy, where he was baptized on August 28, 1912, in the Church of St. John the Baptist. The Rongione family moved to the United States, and took up residence in Philadelphia, where Louis received his early education at St. Rita Parish School. On September 15, 1927, he became a first year postulant at Augustinian Academy on Staten Island, New York. While at the Academy he was elected class Secretary, Editor-in-Chief of the yearbook and President of the Oratorical Society. On September 12, 1931, he was received into the novitiate at New Hamburg, New York, professed first vows on September 13, 1932, and solemn vows on September 13, 1935. In June 1936, he received his B.A. degree from Villanova College, Villanova, Pa. From 1936 to 1940, he pursued theological studies at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C., and in June 1940, he received an M.A. in Education, from Catholic University. On May 30, 1939, Louis was ordained to the priesthood by John M. McNamara, Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore, Md., in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.

Father Rongione received his first assignment to St. Rita High School, Chicago, Ill., on September 6, 1940, where he taught senior English, French and Religion and served as Librarian. In the summer of 1941, he returned to Augustinian Academy on Staten Island, N. Y. where, for the next nine years, he taught the same subjects with the addition of Greek. In 1950, Father was appointed Dean of the Evening Division at Villanova and continued his teaching career, specializing in Moral Theology, including Medical Ethics, and Philosophy. He was moderator of the Villanovan, the Radio Station, the Yearbook, and the InterNos. In October 1952, he was appointed librarian at St. Monica, Rome. In 1953, he returned to Villanova as professor, and in 1956, upon the death of Father Daniel Falvey, he was appointed Chairman of the Library Science Department. He served on the advisory boards at Cabrini College and St. Joseph School of Nursing, Reading, Pa. In addition to being a councilor of the Province, he was appointed prior, first at St. Mary's Hall, then at St. Thomas of Villanova Monastery, where he was respected for his spiritual concerns and gentle attitude toward the members of the community.

As scholar and author, Father Rongione penned books of homilies, conferences on the Beatitudes, the treatise, The Liberty Bell's Sister, and many articles on library science and religious education. For the last 6 years of his life, he prepared weekly homilies for The Philadelphia Catholic Standard and Times. His writings, and the homilies he delivered at Sacred Heart Church in Manoa, for over 20 years, reflect his familiarity with and love for St. Augustine.

Father John M. Driscoll, O.S.A., former President of Villanova, reflected, "Father Rongione brought a warm and human touch to many scholarly and professional activities. He always looked for the best in people and situations. He was admired, respected and loved by all who knew him."

Father Rongione died on June 19, 1980, after a long illness which, at a certain point, required the amputation of his arm. He bor that loss with customary good humor and patience. A Mass of the Resurrection was celebrated in St. Thomas Church on the Villanova campus, and interment followed in Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken, Pa.